Availability bias tends to make these discussions confusing.
Jerks are memorable.
They create drama, which draws attention. There's a reason soap operas and reality TV have a generous supply.
In any case, luck matters more. Without adoption, without growing up in California at the dawn of the information age and without meeting Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs would've been a jerk nobody had heard of.
I would say that CEOs are straight forward and have visions. They say something "stupid" = all people think that the CEO is a jerk. I would say that CEOs shouldn't care too much about what other say - they should follow their vision, which will make them "jerky".
Putting "stupid" in quotes is key, because if you are a CEO of a truly disruptive startup, most everything you say will be called stupid right up until you are celebrated as a genius.
Sometimes their vision is tunnel vision and they reject anything they do not understand. It's the old "convince them that it was their idea in the first place" situation.
I don't think anyone can be a jerk all the time and be successful. Probably the key is selective jerkiness. At least until you make it. Then you can probably be a jerk as much as you like. (Not sure it's required though).
Jerks are memorable.
They create drama, which draws attention. There's a reason soap operas and reality TV have a generous supply.
In any case, luck matters more. Without adoption, without growing up in California at the dawn of the information age and without meeting Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs would've been a jerk nobody had heard of.